U.S. patent number 5,303,973 [Application Number 08/082,521] was granted by the patent office on 1994-04-19 for front body structure of vehicle.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Mazda Motor Corporation. Invention is credited to Yoshio Fujii.
United States Patent |
5,303,973 |
Fujii |
April 19, 1994 |
**Please see images for:
( Certificate of Correction ) ** |
Front body structure of vehicle
Abstract
A front body structure of a vehicle body having a chassis and a
body which is formed separately from the chassis and is mounted
thereon includes a shroud panel which forms a side portion of the
front portion of the body. A wheel apron is connected to the shroud
panel at its front portion and a body strength member is connected
to a rear portion of the wheel apron. An apron reinforcement
extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body and is
connected to the shroud panel at a front portion and to the body
strength member at a rear portion. A first mount portion for
mounting the body on the chassis is provided in the lower portion
of the shroud panel and a second mount portion for mounting the
body on the chassis is provided near the connection of the body
strength member to the wheel apron. A frame extends along the outer
side edge portion of the shroud panel to the body strength member
and is connected to the connection of the shroud panel and the
apron reinforcement at an intermediate portion thereof.
Inventors: |
Fujii; Yoshio (Hiroshima,
JP) |
Assignee: |
Mazda Motor Corporation
(Hiroshima, JP)
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Family
ID: |
26406109 |
Appl.
No.: |
08/082,521 |
Filed: |
June 25, 1993 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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852961 |
Mar 17, 1992 |
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Foreign Application Priority Data
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Oct 15, 1991 [JP] |
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3-265724 |
Mar 28, 1992 [JP] |
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3-064961 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
296/203.02;
296/35.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B62D
25/084 (20130101); B62D 25/082 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B62D
25/08 (20060101); B62D 025/08 () |
Field of
Search: |
;296/35.1,194,203 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Mitchell; David M.
Assistant Examiner: Pike; Andrew C.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Sixbey, Friedman, Leedom &
Ferguson
Parent Case Text
This application is a continuation of Ser. No. 07/852,961, filed
Mar. 17, 1992, now abandoned.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A front body structure of a vehicle formed separately from a
chassis of the vehicle and mounted thereon, said front body
structure comprising
a shroud panel which forms a side portion of a front portion of the
front body structure, a wheel apron having a front portion thereof
connected to the shroud panel, a body strength member which is
connected to a rear portion of said wheel apron, an apron
reinforcement extending in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle
having a front portion thereof connected to said body strength
member, a first mounting means for mounting the front body
structure on the chassis, said first mounting means being provided
in a lower portion of the shroud panel, a second mounting means for
mounting the front body structure on the chassis, said second
mounting means being provided near a connection between said body
strength member and said wheel apron, and a frame extending along
an outer side edge portion of said shroud panel to said body
strength member,
said frame comprising a member which is connected to the shroud
panel to form a closed cross section in conjunction with the shroud
panel along the outer side edge portion of the shroud panel, and a
panel member having a front portion connected to the shroud panel
and a rear portion connected to the body strength member,
said panel member constituting a part of the apron reinforcement
and being connected to the wheel apron to form a closed cross
section in conjunction with the wheel apron,
said frame being connected to a connection between said shroud
panel and said apron reinforcement at an intermediate portion
thereof.
2. A front body structure as defined in claim 1 in which a front
portion of said frame is formed integrally with a cross member
which extends in a transverse direction of the vehicle from the
first mounting means.
3. A front body structure as defined in claim 1 or 2 in which said
body strength member comprises a hinge pillar which extends in a
vertical direction and a side sill which extends in the
longitudinal direction of the vehicle, a front portion of said side
sill being connected to the hinge pillar, and a rear end portion of
said frame is connected to a portion near a connection of said
hinge pillar to said side sill.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a front body structure of a vehicle, and
more particularly to a front body structure of a vehicle of a type
in which the body is mounted on a chassis.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There has been known a vehicle body of a chassis frame structure
comprising a chassis and a body mounted on the chassis. In such a
vehicle body, a major strength of the vehicle is basically carried
by the chassis, and a pair of mount portions supported by the
chassis are often provided in front of and behind each front wheel
apron. As the body side elements associated with the mount
portions, there are a shroud panel which is connected to the
forward portion of the wheel apron and forms a side portion of the
front portion of the vehicle body, a hinge pillar connected to the
rear sides of the wheel apron, a side sill and the like in addition
to the wheel apron.
There has been known a shroud panel comprising a base panel, an
upper member provided on the upper portion of the base panel, a
side member provided on the inner side edge portion of the base
panel, and the like. The wheel apron is generally provided with a
apron reinforcement which extends in the longitudinal direction of
the vehicle body.
When the vehicle running a rough road, vertical vibration acts
between the mount portions in the body on the chassis, and
accordingly, it is required that the body itself has a sufficient
rigidity. In order to increase the rigidity of the body itself, the
rigidity of the part around the front wheel apron must be
increased. However when the shroud panel and/or the wheel apron are
simply provided with additional reinforcement, satisfactory effect
cannot be effected for increase in weight of the vehicle body.
Particularly in the case of the vehicle body of chassis frame
structure, it is not preferred that additional reinforcements are
provided in a large weight since the chassis itself is heavy.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing observations and description, the primary
object of the present invention is to provide a front body
structure of a vehicle having a chassis in which the rigidity of
the part around the front wheel apron can be increased without much
increasing the overall weight of the vehicle body.
The front body structure of the present invention comprises a
shroud panel which forms a side portion of the front portion of the
vehicle body, a wheel apron which is connected to the shroud panel
at its front portion, a body strength member which is connected to
a rear portion of the wheel apron, an apron reinforcement which
extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body and is
connected to the shroud panel at a front portion and to the body
strength member at a rear portion, a first mount portion provided
in the lower portion of the shroud panel and a second mount portion
provided near the connection of the body strength member to the
wheel apron, and is characterized by having a frame which extends
along the outer side edge portion of the shroud panel to the body
strength member and is connected to the connection of the shroud
panel and the apron reinforcement at an intermediate portion
thereof.
In this specification, the term "the body strength member" means a
member which can support the mount portion such as a hinge pillar
or a side sill having a closed cross-section or a floor panel.
The frame may be formed integrally with the apron reinforcement or
separately therefrom.
When the frame is provided, the first and second mount portions are
connected by the frame on the body side and the body strength
member as well as by the chassis. Further since the frame extends
along the outer side edge portion of the shroud panel, the strength
against the vertical vibration of the shroud panel, the wheel apron
and the body strength member between the first and second mount
portions can be efficiently increased.
Thus in accordance with the present invention, the rigidity of the
part around the front wheel apron can be effectively increased by a
relatively small number of reinforcements.
The front portion of the frame may be formed integrally with a
cross member which extends in the transverse direction of the
vehicle body from the first mount portion.
With this arrangement, the number of elements of the frame can be
reduced and accordingly, the rigidity of the part around the front
wheel apron can be effectively increased without substantially
increasing the overall weight of the vehicle body.
The body strength member may comprise a hinge pillar which extends
in the vertical direction and a side sill which extends in the
longitudinal direction of the vehicle body and is connected to the
hinge pillar at the front portion, and the rear end portion of the
frame may be connected to a portion near the connection of the
hinge pillar to the side sill.
With this arrangement, the rigidity of the vehicle body can be
increased more effectively since the rear end portion of the frame
is connected to a portion near the connection of two body strength
members, the hinge pillar and the side sill, which is very high in
rigidity.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a front body
structure in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention,
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the major part of the front body
structure,
FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the wheel apron of the front body
structure in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention,
FIG. 3B is a perspective view of a first panel which forms the
apron reinforcement in accordance with the embodiment of the
present invention,
FIG. 3C is a perspective view of a second panel which forms the
apron reinforcement in accordance with the embodiment of the
present invention,
FIG. 3D is a perspective view of the upper panel which forms the
apron reinforcement in accordance with the embodiment of the
present invention,
FIG. 3E is a perspective view of the side panel which forms the
apron reinforcement in accordance with the embodiment of the
present invention,
FIG. 3F is a perspective view of the base panel which forms the
apron reinforcement in accordance with the embodiment of the
present invention,
FIG. 3G is a perspective view of the cross member which forms the
apron reinforcement in accordance with the embodiment of the
present invention,
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV--IV in FIG.
2,
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line V--V in FIG.
2,
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VI--VI in FIG. 2,
and
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII--VII in FIG.
2.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
As shown in FIG. 1, a front body structure in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention, which is a structure for a
vehicle body having a chassis, comprises a wheel apron 1, a shroud
panel 2 which is connected to the forward portion of the wheel
apron 1 and forms a side portion of the front portion of the
vehicle body, a hinge pillar 3 connected to the rear sides of the
wheel apron 1, a side sill 4 which extends rearward from the lower
end of the hinge pillar 3. The hinge pillar 3 and the side sill 4
are the body strength members.
The shroud panel 2 comprises a base panel 5, an upper panel 6 and a
side member 7 shown in FIGS. 3F, 3D and 3E. The base panel 5 has a
flange 5a and the flange 5a is welded to a side surface 7a of the
side member 7. The upper member 6 has a flange 6a on the front face
thereof and the flange 6a is welded to the upper end of the side
member 7.
As shown in in FIG. 3A, the wheel apron 1 is formed of a steel
plate and has three flanges 1a, 1b and 1c on the front end thereof
and a flange 1d on the rear end thereof. The front flanges 1a, 1b
and 1c are welded on the rear surface of the base panel 5 and the
rear flange 1d is welded to the hinge pillar 3. As shown in FIG. 2,
the hinge pillar 3 comprises outer and inner panels 3a and 3b which
are welded together to form a closed cross-section. Similarly, the
side sill 4 comprises outer and inner panels 4a and 4b which are
welded together to form a closed cross-section. In this particular
embodiment, the outer panels 3a and 4a of the hinge pillar 3 and
the side sill 4 are formed integrally with each other.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a first mount portion 8 is provided on
the lower portion of the shroud panel 2 and a second mount portion
9 is provided on the inner side of the side sill 4. As clearly
shown in FIG. 4, the wheel apron 1 and the shroud panel 2 are
mounted on the chassis C (FIG. 1) at the first mount portion 8 by
way of a mount bracket 10. The mount bracket 10 has its upper
surface 10a welded to the lower surface of the wheel apron 1 and
its side surface 10b welded to the rear surface of the base panel
5. A chassis bracket 12 which is connected to the chassis C at one
end is secured to the mount bracket 10 with a rubber mount 11
positioned therebetween. The second mount portion 9 is
substantially the same structure as the first mount portion 8.
As shown FIG. 2, an apron reinforcement 13 is provided on the wheel
apron 1 and is connected to the shroud panel 2 at its front end
portion 13a and to the hinge pillar 3 at its rear end portion 13b.
The apron reinforcement 13 is formed of a first panel 14 which is
L-shaped in cross-section as shown in FIG. 3B and a second panel 15
which has a front portion L-shaped in cross-section and a rear
portion channel-shaped in cross-section as shown in FIG. 3C. The
first panel 14 is welded to the wheel apron 1 to form a closed
cross-section as can be understood from FIG. 2. The rear end 14a of
the first panel 14 is welded to the hinge pillar 3 and the front
14b of the first panel 14 is welded to an intermediate portion of
the second panel 15. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the second panel 15
is welded to the wheel apron 1 to form a closed cross-section and
is further welded to the shroud panel 2 and the hinge pillar 3 at
the front and rear end portions 15a and 15b . In FIGS. 6 and 7,
reference numeral 18 denotes a front fender.
As shown in FIG. 2, on the front surface of the shroud panel 2 is
connected a cross member 16 which is channel-shaped in
cross-section and is bent at each portion 16a thereof as shown in
FIG. 3G (see FIG. 1 also). The end portion 16a of the cross member
16 extends along the outer edge portion 5b of the base panel 5 of
the shroud panel 2 and is welded to the base panel 5 to form a
closed cross-section. The extreme end 16C of the end portion 16a
extends to the connection of the base panel 5 of the shroud panel 2
and the front end portion of the apron reinforcement 13 (see FIG. 5
also). The straight portion 16b of the cross member 16 extends in
the transverse direction of the vehicle body along the lower side
of the shroud panel 2.
Thus, in this embodiment, a frame 17 extends from the first mount
portion 8 to the side sill 4 along the outer edge portion 5b of the
base panel 5 of the shroud panel 2 and through the connection of
the shroud panel 2 and the apron reinforcement 13. With this frame
17, the rigidity of the vehicle body can be effectively increased.
Further, in this particular embodiment, since the frame 17 is
formed integrally with the cross member 16, the apron reinforcement
13 and the like, increase in number of the elements and in weight
of the vehicle body is minimized.
Though only the left half of the vehicle body is described above,
the right half of the vehicle body is of the same structure.
Though, in the embodiment described above, the frame 17 is formed
integrally with a part of the cross member 16, the apron
reinforcement 13, these members may be separate from each other.
Further, the frame may be of a single member.
Though, in the embodiment described above, the rear end portion of
the frame is connected to the hinge pillar, it may be connected
other body strength members.
Further the manner for connecting the shroud panel and the apron
reinforcement or their shapes may be changed according to the
vehicle body.
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